White Dude, Black Dude: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

 

 

Historically, a lot of black comedians based routines on this format, which was shocking, transgressive and deeply satisfying for black audiences when they first heard it in the late '70s and early '80s. As part of the "blaxploitation" movement where black people started reclaiming and accepting certain black stereotypes as positive rather than negative portrayals of black culture, especially of black masculinity, male black stand-up comics [[Reconstruction|started to turn white stereotypes of blacks being "uncivilized" and "dangerous" on their head]], recreating the stereotype as white men being over-civilized, timid and cowardly while black men were powerful, independent and strong. Comedians such as [[Richard Pryor]] and Steve Harvey were early pioneers of the trope, and later comedians followed suit.

 

Generally, [[N-Word Privileges|only minority comedians]] really can get away with using this trope without massively offending people.

 

== [[Comic Books]] ==

* Johnny Ryan did a parody of this trope with [[Magneto]] doing a stand-up routine about "mutants do it like this". Ending with him getting carried away and blowing up the Earth.

 

== [[Film]] ==

 

== [[Live Action TV]] ==

** Also used as parody once to illustrate how Tracy was growing distant from his fanbase:

{{quote|"Have you ever noticed St. Bart's people be eating their lobster like this ..."}}

* ''[[Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip]]'' had a variation where the bad comic just played up a black stereotype.

* ''[[The Daily Show]]'' featured Jon Stewart trying it, inspired by Barack Obama's debate comedy.

{{quote|"When white people's power goes off, they panic...but when black people's power goes off, they ''plan it''!"}}

* Carlos Mencia plays this trope straight, in-your-face, crude and often at the expense of Latinos to the point where it's a tad uncomfortable for some people.

* [[Russell Peters]]' act tends to go along the lines of "white people are like this (insert lame stereotype), but Indian people are like this (even lamer stereotype)".

** Peters is somewhat unique in that his natural voice is much closer to the "white" voice than the "brown" voice, as although he is of Indian descent, he was born and raised in a suburb of Toronto, Ontario.

 

== [[Web Comics]] ==

{{quote|'''Roland''': So black bears be walkin' all like ''this''! But brown bears be walking all like ''this''!

'''Mr. Owl''': Woah, woah, woah. ''Woah''. Are you using bear color as a proxy for human race? Because that is ''not'' cool.

'''Audience:''' <Angry glares> }}

* Done on the ''[[Futurama]]'' episode "My Three Suns" with a Trisolian comedian doing a routine about the difference between those who live under the yellow sun and those who live under the red sun. Fry laughs his ass off and agrees, despite having been on the planet for about half an hour. Which tells you oh so much.

{{quote|"When white man wets his bed, it's just 'oh he wets his bed', but when a black guy wets his bed, they say he's ruining the bed!"}}

 

== [[Real Life]] ==

{{quote|'''Rev. Wright''': [[Memetic Mutation|"If you got some white friends...they'll be clappin' like this, ya'll."]]}}